The Next Lifetime
by messington
Summary: When Ichigo's human life ends, he goes to the Soul Society eager to see have another chance with someone who left him too soon. Things are complicated when he learns that, while he remembers her, she doesn't remember him. IchiHime.
1. Chapter 1

title: The Next Lifetime, chapter 1

spoilers: trying to keep it as current as possible, so it may contain spoilers from 418 onward  
blabber: The idea for this story just kinda came to me, so I sat down in the past two days and just wrote out the first chapter. I don't expect my other updates to be that fast, though. I've also been wanting to do a multi-chaptered IchiHime fic that's more involved story-wise than Small Talk. I hope you all stick around and enjoy the story.

Bleach belongs to Kubo Tite, Shueisha, and quite a few other people. Just not me.

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The rhythmic beep of the machines was the only sound in the room. When combined with the pungent smell of alcohol and cleaning products as well as the stark landscape of white, it was all enough to drive him crazy.

It had been a very long sixty years since his youth of fighting hollows and saving the world. Now Ichigo Kurosaki was lying in a hospital bed, waiting for his human form to waste away. Instead of a head of bright orange hair, it had all faded to grey and was becoming sparse. The scowl that he wore had etched its self onto his face, forming prominent wrinkles in his brows and forehead.

Years ago, when he'd discovered that it was his scowl that she first liked, he couldn't help but wonder, as he grew older, if she would have liked the way his features aged to accentuate his expression. Neither of them ever got the answer to that thought.

Orihime had made the choice to sacrifice herself so they would finally end the conflict with Aizen. In order to truly destroy the hougyouku that Aizen had embedded in himself, she had to use all of her energy, essentially swapping her life in order to end the life of that troublesome object. Ichigo wanted to think that, over the past sixty years, he came to peace with her death and understood that it was her choice. His conscious mind would have agreed, since that was what he always had to tell himself, even now. However, his subconscious still missed her and still thought that it wouldn't have happened if he protected her better or even just payed her a little more attention. Maybe then he would have been able to see how eagerly she wished to protect him and been able to say something to her before she made such a choice.

At times, he'd catch himself wondering about how things would have been if she'd survived. Would their friendship have grown and changed? As a young man, he had to admit that he wasn't very perceptive of his feelings, let alone Orihime's. As time passed and people walked in to and out of his life, he grew to understand what it meant to be love and to be loved. It was a heartbreaking realization for him, because it slowly convinced him that he probably did love Orihime and that she'd definitely loved him in what little life she had.

Encouraged by others, Ichigo tried his hardest not to let himself be alone because of what had happened. It wasn't until about midway through college that he had his first girlfriend. She was nice enough, but she wasn't kind in the way the Orihime was. She was always telling him to smile and telling him to stop being so grumpy. If she were truly kind, her presence alone would have made him smile. He didn't want it forced out of him, so he broke up with her. After that, there were a few others. Nothing was every very serious, but it was at least his attempt to show everyone that he was okay and moving on.

One last girl came along about a year after he finished college. She was laid back and low key. The type who'd rather stay at home and watch a baseball game instead of getting dressed up and going out. That made it easy enough for him. She also didn't seem bothered by his occasionally rude attitude. She lasted longer, much longer. In fact, they were even married. He thought of it more as the next step in their relationship, not necessarily a life long vow of love. He'd made it clear during the short stint of the marriage that he was simply going through the motions and even his laid back wife had enough. Ichigo Kurosaki got married at 25 and divorced just after he turned 28.

The years passed in quick succession. Ichigo went to work, socialized as necessary for his job, and did little else. Shortly after his divorce was finalized, Yuzu had a child. Then, Karin shocked everyone by eloping in Hawaii, and a few years after that, she started a family. At least his sisters were living a full life with families and friends of their own. Ichigo hadn't seen Chad since after they finished college, and Chad moved to Mexico. Ishida was still around, but one person wasn't enough to make him feel like he had a real life.

A few months ago, at a routine checkup, the doctor had told Ichigo that he was worried about the issues he'd been having with stomach pain. They'd been a part of his life for quite some time, but it had only been recently that the pain was enough for him to barely get out of bed some days. After a battery of tests, the final diagnosis was made: advanced stomach cancer that had spread through his body.

Ichigo refused treatment. He knew that it was terminal, and he didn't want to bother with any kind of effort to keep him around for another few months. This was it. He was finally going to die.

The news of his diagnosis must have spread, and a very familiar face appeared one day just at the end of visiting hours. Ichigo knew exactly who it was when he heard the telltale clomp of wooden geta against the linoleum floor.

"Ah, Kurosaki-san, I must say that it's certainly a surprise to see you like this," Urahara said, waving the same old fan with his usual green and white striped hat covering his eyes.

"What is it, geta-boshi?"

"Geta-boshi? I think it's been sixty years since I've heard you call me that," Urahara replied with a bit of a giggle tickling the tone of his speech.

"I know you're not one to be sentimental about me dying, so you've got to have some reason for being here," Ichigo rasped weakly.

"Just as short as ever. You've grown into quite a good grumpy old man, but you are correct. I've come because there's something you should know before you depart this life."

Depart this life? Give me a break, Ichigo thought as his patience dwindled.

"How long has it been since you last used your shinigami form?"

"It's probably been a good thirty years," Ichigo replied, counting back in his head. After Aizen, he'd learned to better control his reiatsu to keep it from spilling out of him. As a result, hollow attacks greatly diminished, and by the time Ichigo was in his mid-30s, the Soul Society only needed a semi-regular patrol in the town and allowed him to retire from being an official shinigami substitute.

"Hm, I was hoping it would have been less than that. Well, you know how when you fight as a shinigami, the wounds you receive are transferred to your human form. As a young man, this isn't a problem, but as you age, it's harder and harder for your human form to keep up. I was hoping you'd have used your shinigami ability later in life and felt this happen."

"What does that have to do with anything?"

"Well, you haven't let me finish, Kurosaki-san. Before your chain was cut, your soul and your body were still one. They would have aged at the same rate. However, your chain was cut in order for you to regain your powers, go to the Soul Society, and rescue Kuchiki-san. That would mean that you died sixty years ago. Thankfully, your human form was not damaged in the process, and you've been able to use that like normal since then. Your reiryoku powers your human form, which functions just as a gigai, but unlike a gigai, a human body can only live for so long. It ages, which is what's happening now. Normally, when people die of old age, they're sent to the Soul Society, live for a short time, then enter the loop of reincarnation. Some are even sent directly into reincarnation, because they are unable to live in the state in which they died. However, when your human body dies, the spirit body you have right now, Kurosaki-san, is quite different."

"I still don't get why you're telling me this," Ichigo said, his irritation at this point quite apparent.

"Spirit bodies don't age at the same rate humans do. That means, when you die, you won't look or feel much older than you did when you were sixteen. At most, you'd be about twenty in human years."

"You're coming over here to tell me that I'm going to look younger when I die? That's it?"

"Trust me, Kurosaki-san. You'll soon understand how important it will be to you."

With that, Urahara turned and left, but not without stopping in the doorway. "You say I'm not sentimental, Kurosaki-san, but it will certainly be a lot less interesting without you around. Good luck on your next life."

Weeks passed, and slowly, Ichigo's conditioned worsened. The pain was unbearable, and he wondered how long they were planning to make him suffer. He wasn't sure if he was excited at the prospect of being young again. Entering the loop of reincarnation sounded mighty tempting. He knew if he were to be young again, he'd certainly get pushed into being a shinigami and likely become a captain.

His attention was turned away from his thoughts as a quick flash of light flooded his room. His eyes widened as a familiar-looking circular shouji screens appeared as the light faded. As always, they opened on their own to let out another familiar sight. He could feel what could possibly have been his first smile in years form as the short, black-haired woman stepped out of the portal.

"Long time no see, Ichigo," Rukia said with a smile, her hands on her hips.

"Yeah, it's been awhile. Hasn't it, Rukia?" he weakly replied.

"I never thought I'd be seeing you as an old man like this," she said, a little softer and gentler this time. Even though she knew this was only the end of his human life, seeing the man she'd grown so close to in such a short time all those years ago looking so sickly still tugged at her heart.

"How do you think I feel? The first you come here in forty years, and I'm like this. It's embarrassing." Just as he finished speaking, he felt himself getting very tired, more so than after one of his episodes of pain. It felt like a battle to just stay awake.

"I think it's time, isn't it? Just let yourself fall asleep," Rukia said in a calming voice.

So he did. He let the weariness of his body take over as he slowly let himself slip away. There was no fear or questioning. He knew exactly what was going to happen. All he had to do was sleep.

When he opened his eyes, he was standing beside the bed, looking down at his lifeless human body. He could see his hands and lower arms. They were as they were when he was younger. Urahara was right.

"Are you okay?" Rukia asked as she noticed his fixation on his aged body.

"Yeah," he replied, shaking his head to break his fixation on his past. "I think I'm ready to go now."

"That's good to hear. I thought we'd spend more time with you being surprised that you're young again."

"No, Urahara told me about that a few weeks ago. I don't really know why, but he said that it'd be important to know."

"You know Urahara, Ichigo. He's incapable of giving anyone a straight answer about anything. Whatever it is he's talking about, you'll figure it out sooner or later. Probably later."

"Great, now I have something to look forward to," Ichigo replied sarcastically. "Let's just get out of here. Being around my old body for too long is gonna creep me out."

"Okay," Rukia said, turning to open the senkaimon once again. "This will be your first time going to the Soul Society the real way."

With that, the two entered the gate. It was only a few steps between the real world and the Soul Society. There was no need to clear out intruders not that he had a hell butterfly, so the long corridor of the dangai wasn't necessary. It felt strange to Ichigo not to be running for what felt like forever when going over to the other dimension, but even without the time between the worlds, he remembered something just as they neared the gate on the other side.

"Rukia?" Ichigo asked as they stepped out the other end of the senkaimon and into the Soul Society. "Is Inoue here?"

"I had a feeling you'd ask about that," she said with a sigh. Her tone caused Ichigo to tense, not sure what exactly he was going to hear. "She's here, but there is something that you should know about Inoue."

"She better not be in some slum on the Rukongai. After everything she did and how her life was, she doesn't deserve that!"

"Calm down. It's not that. She's a shinigami now, but the only thing is… she doesn't remember her past life."

. To be continued .


	2. Chapter 2

title: The Next Lifetime, chapter 2

spoilers: with the current developments, it's not very likely for there to be anything past about 418  
blabber: Thanks for all those who reviewed, favorited, and put this story on alert. I hope you all enjoy this chapter. It took a little longer than I planned, as this story is just kind of evolving as I write it.

Bleach belongs to Kubo Tite, Shueisha, and quite a few other people. Just not me.

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"What do you mean she doesn't remember? How is that possible? That parakeet remembered Chad!" Ichigo said, clearly quite flustered and upset by what Rukia had just told him.

"A parakeet that remembered Chad? What the?" she replied, clearly confused by what Ichigo was saying. "Look, no one's ever guaranteed to remember anything from their previous life. Actually, it's pretty rare for people to remember anything more than just a few details. Anyway, we don't have enough time to be getting into Inoue's situation now. Yamamoto-soutaichou wanted to see you as soon as you get here. We can talk about it after that."

"Stop the bullshit, Rukia. We'll talk about it now. I don't care if I'm supposed to be somewhere."

Rukia looked at her old friend to see a familiar expression from him. He didn't look very different than he did that morning when they'd learned that Orihime had been taken to Hueco Mundo. She'd gotten to understand, just slightly, Ichigo's feelings for the girl when she'd seen him so depressed after first encountering the arrancar. It didn't completely surprise her to hear that Orihime being injured trying to help him would be the problem that it was, but it was when she saw that look on his face when he promised to protect her that she knew he was serious. Her thoughts were confirmed at his reaction on that other morning, when Ichigo had even dared to yell that the captain-commander.

After defeating Aizen, it was hard for her to see the Ichigo that emerged. He may have looked like he was okay after a few months, but she could see that little bit of dullness in his eyes that he was trying to hide. She'd, of course, push him and tell him that it wasn't his fault, that it was Orihime's choice to trade her life to protect this whole world, especially him. She even told him how well she got to know Orihime during their month of training in the Soul Society and part of that was coming to understand how much she wanted to protect Ichigo. She'd told him it hoping that it would give Ichigo some piece of mind, but it had to opposite effect. To her, it even seemed like it strained their relationship a bit.

Rukia didn't have much time to attempt to make things better, she was soon promoted, taking Renji's place as the vice captain of the 6th division. Slowly, due to a combination of Ichigo projecting his emotional state onto his relationship with her and how busy she'd gotten as a vice captain to her strict brother, she fell out of contact with Ichigo.

"I promise, Ichigo. I'll tell you when it's over. You've held onto this crappy mood for sixty years, I think you can last another few minutes."

That was just the problem. Ichigo didn't want to hold onto it any more. He was dead now and so was Orihime. He wanted to get over this state he couldn't completely shake for the past six decades.

"You better make good on that promise," Ichigo said with a stern and serious tone.

"Do you think I would have promised you if I wasn't going to live up to it?" she asked with a smirk. "What kind of friend do you think I am?" Ichigo didn't have much time to answer Rukia's question, as they were outside the doors of the first division when she finished talking.

He looked at the doors with a sense of dread. Whatever was behind there, he knew, was not going to be good. The celebrations that he assumed were being planned–likely by Matsumoto so she could have an excuse to drink–were not going to be lurking behind those doors. As he pushed the doors open and entered, it was just as he thought, a private meeting with Yamamoto. With Rukia trailing behind him, Ichigo walked up to the captain commander, and waited for what the old man had to say.

"Kurosaki Ichigo," the old man bellowed. "Without your final attachment to your human life, you have finally become a true shinigami. However, now that you are a citizen of the Soul Society, you can no longer do as you please if you wish to call yourself a shinigami. It is imperative that you join the Gotei 13. Otherwise, we'll have no choice but to contain you."

Ichigo's scowl deepened. Of course this was going to be what they needed to see him for.

"This is about my hollow, isn't it?"

"It's simply a matter of safety, Kurosaki Ichigo. If you chose not to be part of the Gotei 13, where we can closely observe you, we cannot allow you to roam this world freely."

This was the last thing he needed. He wanted to start his new life. He wanted answers about Orihime. He didn't want to re-tread over this petty nonsense that seemed to follow him around.

"I'll join your damn Gotei 13, but not because you're forcing me to. I want to be a shinigami and protect innocent people from hollows. Is that all you need to say?" Ichigo asked, his impatience clear in his tone.

"It is not. Now knowing that you will become a shinigami, I would like to offer you a position as captain."

"Ten second ago, you were saying I was a danger to the Soul Society, now you're saying that you want me to be a captain?"

"Your power, as potentially dangerous as it may be, cannot be ignored. Ukitake Jyuushiro's illness has worsened considerably in the years since the battle with Aizen, and he is now at the point where he can no longer perform his duties as a captain. He has been waiting for your arrival to fully retire and wishes for you to take his place. The other captains have also agreed that you will be a satisfactory replacement."

"Ukitake-san wants me to take his place?" Ichigo asked incredulously. Yamamoto simply nodded in response. He'd grown to understand how respected the senior captain was, and at the moment, he wasn't exactly sure if her would do any good for the 13th division. He wasn't kind and charismatic in the same way Ukitake was, and he wasn't sure if the squad would welcome such a change in their leadership. "That's a really big hole to fill, isn't it? I… um… I guess I'll do it. No, I mean, yes, definitely, I'll become captain of the 13th division."

"Very well. There will be a formal announcement ceremony tomorrow, and you will officially begin your duties."

_So it's really that simple?_ Ichigo thought.

"Uh, just one more thing," he hesitantly asked. "Where will I be sleeping tonight?"

"Even without a formal announcement, your agreement for the position makes you captain. That means that you're welcome to the captain's quarters within your division. Your haori should also be there. Any more questions?" the elderly commander asked with an impatient tone.

"Um, no, that's it."

"Kuchiki-fukutaicho, if you would please show Kurosaki-taichou back to his quarters."

"Yes, Yamamoto-soutaicho," Rukia said with a short bow before turning to leave, Ichigo following close behind her.

She was a little surprised when their trip to his new quarters was silent. Before they went into the meeting, Ichigo had been eager to hear any kind of information about Orihime, yet now he followed behind her in complete silence. Though short, the meeting that had just happened was certainly enough to cause a whirl of emotions in Ichigo, enough to make him set aside any further questions about Orihime for the moment. "We're here." Rukia was the first to speak when they reached the door of his quarters. "It's your new home."

Ichigo opened the doors to a large open space, which was certainly much larger than the apartment that he'd last called home. It was probably even bigger than a whole floor of his father's house. It seemed a bit barren overall. Ichigo figured that it was probably more full when it was Ukitake's residence.

Out of what little furniture was there, he could see that there was a package on the desk. It was the only thing on the surface. He walked over to see what had been left there for him. Carefully tearing the paper, he could easily see a portion of the black diamond outline. With a few more tears, he could see his haori. There it was, sitting in front of him, the most visible symbol of his position. Now there was something tangible to make the situation real in his mind.

"So you're not going to ask me about Inoue?" Rukia asked as she watched Ichigo hold up his new haori.

"I was getting to that," he replied in his usual grumpy tone. "I just want to know about her life here and what she's like. That kinda stuff. I mean, she doesn't remember her past life, but does that make her any different? Could she ever regain her memories?"

"There are things that feel familiar to her, but she'll never regain her memories. In using all her soul's power to the point of death, she arrived here having given up that part of her, but she's not really different from how you remember her. Her powers are the same, too. She even managed to become the 4th division vice captain in about ten years. I guess even without her memories, she's still very much the Inoue you knew."

"That's good." It was all he could think to say. Of course, he felt relief knowing that she wouldn't be different from the Orihime that he'd carried in his memory, but he was still reeling from the notion that she wouldn't remember him or anything that had happened to her. He'd lived the past sixty years of life hoping that, at least once he died, that he'd have the opportunity to apologize to her.

"And, Ichigo, when you do see her, don't say anything about her past. It may not seem like such an issue to you. All it will do is overwhelm and burden her, and it won't change anything."

"I understand," Ichigo replied with a low tone. "Rukia, I kinda just want to be alone right now, okay?"

"Okay, Kurosaki-taicho. I will see you at the announcement ceremony tomorrow," Rukia replied coldly. At this point, she'd been reminded of why he was so frustrating to talk with in the aftermath of Aizen. Something in him had kept him from allowing himself to accept what had happened. Despite an indifferent front, a sadness had stayed within in for far too long, and it was at the point where Rukia knew that the only person who could make a difference didn't remember any of it. Still, knowing the Orihime that she knew now, Rukia held out hope that maybe, even without her memories, that she could do something for Ichigo, because it was still so hard for her see him like that.

Ichigo, weary from an emotionally trying day, did little more but find his bed and rest until the announcement ceremony. Despite the many thoughts circling through his head, it did not take him long to fall asleep.

It didn't seem long before he was awoken by a message that had been encoded to a hell butterfly. It told him to meet in first division office for the announcement ceremony over and over again, until he woke and dismissed the damned thing.

Getting up, he straightened out his shikahusho, hoping that it was enough to hide the fact that he'd slept in his uniform. He threw on his haori as he walked out the door, ready to head to the first division headquarters. Somewhere between the divisions, it occured to Ichigo that it was very possible that Orihime was going to be there. She was a vice captain, and Rukia, also a vice captain, was also going to be there. In an instant, he went from being annoyed about the whole idea of an announcement ceremony to feeling completely anxious about seeing Orihime for the first time in over half a century.

He arrived at the doors of the first division headquarters, stopping in front of the massive doors, and took one last deep breath to calm his nerves before opening the doors.

Walking in, it was easy to see that all eyes were on him, and he tried his best to scan the room of largely familiar faces to try and find the one that he really wanted to see. He tried to quickly look for Unohana, but he was quickly interrupted by Yamamoto.

"I believe it is time to commence the accouncement ceremony." With that, the captains moved from their jumbled gathering into two lines, which Ichigo stood at the end of. "As many of you are aware, due to the escalation of his illness, the captain of the 13th squad, Jushiro Ukikate has asked to retire from the Gotei 13. At his request, we were told to consider the ryoka Ichigo Kurosaki, who was not long for his world. There were no objections to this inquiry, as his skills have proven themselves to be the standards of a captain of the Gotei 13. Upon his passing from his human life, a proposal was extended and accepted. And so, we do hereby officially appoint former ryoka Ichigo Kurosaki as captain of the 13th division."

A brief applause followed before the captains came up to greet him. He said his pleasantries, certain that later that day there would be an opportunity for a less formal meeting. Out of the corner of his eye, he could see that familiar tone of auburn hair. Not wanting to seem eager to talk to her, he waited as Renji, who was now captain of the 5th division, teased him at length about how he looked in a haori. His patience soon paid off as Unohana was finally in front of him, her vice captain just behind her. Unohana said a few words of congratulations, before motioning to Orihime.

"As you may notice, my vice captain has changed since our last meeting. Isane-san is now teaching an intermediary course in healing at the academy, and Inoue-san has taken her place."

"I've heard a lot about you, Kurosaki-taicho," she said in her usual cheery tone. He'd missed hearing her say his name, though he knew that taicho suffix had to change. "It's a bit strange to try and greet a new captain in this manner, since I usually get to see captains when they visit our facilities. I hope not to see you in the 4th division, but not too often!"

With that greeting, Ichigo had no idea what exactly he was going to do, but he knew that he needed to get closer to her, and the warmth she exuded, than he had been in his previous life.

. To be continued.

This time around I do have one final little note. I just want to say it outright that I do not plan on having Orihime regain her memories. This story was really inspired by my interpretation of the five lifetimes, one love speech that no matter who Orihime is or what she does, she'll fall in love with Ichigo. Of course, the twist here being that this Ichigo is really still in his previous lifetime with a bit of baggage and yadda, yadda, yadda.


End file.
